sypher
27th May 2003, 22:44
Just today i was talking to someone who believed not only that sweatshops were not bad but that they helped the economy. he wwas doing a speech on it aswell. This is the paper he gave me as his arguement.
Dan Scovill
Sweatshop Paper
Sweatshops, a Bad Thing?
An analysis of the use and importance of sweat shops that exist in the world.
We as a society are constantly asking, “Why do sweatshops exist?”The answer to this question is that companies like Nike and Walmart use sweatshops to produce their goods for a much cheaper rate thus raising their profit margin.The problem people have with sweatshops is that the workers that labor in these places work very hard in poor conditions for very little money.But although people may condemn sweatshops there are some realities that we need to analyze to fully understand this topic.Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl Wudunn make a statement in their article “Two Cheers for Sweatshops” that sums up nicely the misunderstanding of the modern world.“Yet sweatshops that seem brutal from the vantage point of an American sitting in his living room can appear tantalizing to a Thai laborer getting by on beetles.”[1]The fact of the matter is that sweatshops in the eyes of the actual workers are not as bad as they are made out to be.
Many organizations like sweatshopwatch.org and sweatshops.org make the point that sweatshops do not have to exist with statements like, “…sweat shops are not inevitable.”[2]But the truth is that it would not be a healthy thing for the world’s economy if they did not exist.The companies that use sweatshops are creating jobs for people that would not other wise have them.It is better for these people to have jobs that may be low paying and difficult rather then no jobs at all.People in these countries are astounded when they hear that American’s boycott from buying the clothes that they make in the sweatshops.Kristof and Wudunn state in their article that, “The simplest way to help the poorest Asians would be to buy more from sweatshops, not less.”[3]This statement shows us that we really do not have a clean grasp on what we think the problems with the sweatshops in the world today are.
Although the reason why we are so against these sweatshops is because of the terrible atrocities that do unfortunately and indeed occur.But these occurrences are in a much smaller number then the public assumes.Sweatshops are slowly but surely becoming better work places because the shop managers are trying to attract and keep the best, hardest-working laborers.[4]In Dongguan, China wages have risen from about $50 a month to about $250 a month.[5]A trace of a middle class society is also starting to emerge with the arrival of private housing market, video arcades, and computer schools.[6]Since in these third world countries the economy is so poor compared to ours, the dollar goes a lot further.Kristof and Wudunn describe the breakfast of the average Chinese worker.“For the equivalent of about 5 cents, she offered a huge green mango leaf filled with rice, fish paste and fried beetles. It was a hearty breakfast, if one didn't mind the odd antenna left sticking in one's teeth.”[7]This shows us that even though there is no way in the world any of us would be able to survive on $2 a week it is very possible for the average Chinese worker.
One major factor that has to be considered in this argument is the fact that workers in China do not have to pay as much for their everyday goods and they do not have as many expenses as we do in America.Say an American that makes a hefty $104,000 a year spends about an average of $20 a day on food.That would equal $140 a week, which would equal 7% of the hefty weekly income of $2000.If a Chinese worker spends only $0.05 per meal it would equal $1.05 per week.If this worker’s salary is $2 per day and he or she works seven days a week their salary would be $14 a week.This would leave them spending 7.5% of their money on food.This is almost the same as the rich American.With time these numbers will continue to get better because the Asian economy is continuing to grow and become stronger with the help of sweatshops.[8]
Besides the fact that sweatshops are helping the overall economy of Asia, they are also helping the individual people of this large region.Kristof and Wudunn tell the story of a Cambodian woman, Nhem Yen who lived in a region of Cambodia that was extremely rampant with malaria and she could not afford the $5 (2.5 days of labor) Mosquito net to protect her children.[9]Her daughter and son-in-law both died because of this.If there had been another sweatshop in her area she would have been able to purchase a net and save her family.
A perfect example that shows that sweatshops are working to help the economies lies within a decision made by India fifty years ago.Kristof and Wudunn describe a situation regarding the way sweatshops effect economies:
“For all the misery they can engender, sweatshops at least offer a precarious escape from the poverty that is the developing world's greatest problem. Over the past 50 years, countries like India resisted foreign exploitation, while countries that started at a similar economic level -- like Taiwan and South Korea -- accepted sweatshops as the price of development. Today there can be no doubt about which approach worked better. Taiwan and South Korea are modern countries with low rates of infant mortality and high levels of education; in contrast, every year 3.1 million Indian children die before the age of 5, mostly from diseases of poverty like diarrhea.”[10]
The world must realize that there are always going to be places in the world that are not as prosperous as others.These will always be the places in the world that work harder and make less money.This happens even within the confines of our society today.For example, a construction worker may work much harder then a plastic surgeon that works a quarter of the hours and makes five times as much money.It is always based on the amount of schooling and education that one receives and since third world countries do not yet have the education that we do they will continue to do hard labor.However since these economies are continuing to grow they are also becoming more educated and thus they will someday not have an economy based around nothing but hard labor.
Although the conditions of many of these sweatshops are harsh and severe they still need to exist.Without them the economies of these countries would be non-existent.They would not be growing the way they are right now.People would be suffering even more then they already are.Sweatshops cannot and should not be removed from our world.They are essential to the survival of the delicate balance that is the world economy.Many of the brutal sweatshops are being changed to offer more accommodating conditions.[11]This is a major reason why they are so beneficial to the economies of these countries, because the workers want to work hard so that they can make money without as many risks as they used to have to deal with.They are without a doubt a necessary evil of our society.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[1] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[2] http://www.coopamerica.org/sweatshops/sswh...ysweatshops.htm (http://www.coopamerica.org/sweatshops/sswhysweatshops.htm)
[3] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[4] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[5] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[6] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[7] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[8] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[9] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[10] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[11]http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html
Of course I shot down all of his points and tried to help him see what is really happening in the world but, I don't think it helped any...too bad
(Edited by sypher at 4:46 am on May 28, 2003)
Dan Scovill
Sweatshop Paper
Sweatshops, a Bad Thing?
An analysis of the use and importance of sweat shops that exist in the world.
We as a society are constantly asking, “Why do sweatshops exist?”The answer to this question is that companies like Nike and Walmart use sweatshops to produce their goods for a much cheaper rate thus raising their profit margin.The problem people have with sweatshops is that the workers that labor in these places work very hard in poor conditions for very little money.But although people may condemn sweatshops there are some realities that we need to analyze to fully understand this topic.Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl Wudunn make a statement in their article “Two Cheers for Sweatshops” that sums up nicely the misunderstanding of the modern world.“Yet sweatshops that seem brutal from the vantage point of an American sitting in his living room can appear tantalizing to a Thai laborer getting by on beetles.”[1]The fact of the matter is that sweatshops in the eyes of the actual workers are not as bad as they are made out to be.
Many organizations like sweatshopwatch.org and sweatshops.org make the point that sweatshops do not have to exist with statements like, “…sweat shops are not inevitable.”[2]But the truth is that it would not be a healthy thing for the world’s economy if they did not exist.The companies that use sweatshops are creating jobs for people that would not other wise have them.It is better for these people to have jobs that may be low paying and difficult rather then no jobs at all.People in these countries are astounded when they hear that American’s boycott from buying the clothes that they make in the sweatshops.Kristof and Wudunn state in their article that, “The simplest way to help the poorest Asians would be to buy more from sweatshops, not less.”[3]This statement shows us that we really do not have a clean grasp on what we think the problems with the sweatshops in the world today are.
Although the reason why we are so against these sweatshops is because of the terrible atrocities that do unfortunately and indeed occur.But these occurrences are in a much smaller number then the public assumes.Sweatshops are slowly but surely becoming better work places because the shop managers are trying to attract and keep the best, hardest-working laborers.[4]In Dongguan, China wages have risen from about $50 a month to about $250 a month.[5]A trace of a middle class society is also starting to emerge with the arrival of private housing market, video arcades, and computer schools.[6]Since in these third world countries the economy is so poor compared to ours, the dollar goes a lot further.Kristof and Wudunn describe the breakfast of the average Chinese worker.“For the equivalent of about 5 cents, she offered a huge green mango leaf filled with rice, fish paste and fried beetles. It was a hearty breakfast, if one didn't mind the odd antenna left sticking in one's teeth.”[7]This shows us that even though there is no way in the world any of us would be able to survive on $2 a week it is very possible for the average Chinese worker.
One major factor that has to be considered in this argument is the fact that workers in China do not have to pay as much for their everyday goods and they do not have as many expenses as we do in America.Say an American that makes a hefty $104,000 a year spends about an average of $20 a day on food.That would equal $140 a week, which would equal 7% of the hefty weekly income of $2000.If a Chinese worker spends only $0.05 per meal it would equal $1.05 per week.If this worker’s salary is $2 per day and he or she works seven days a week their salary would be $14 a week.This would leave them spending 7.5% of their money on food.This is almost the same as the rich American.With time these numbers will continue to get better because the Asian economy is continuing to grow and become stronger with the help of sweatshops.[8]
Besides the fact that sweatshops are helping the overall economy of Asia, they are also helping the individual people of this large region.Kristof and Wudunn tell the story of a Cambodian woman, Nhem Yen who lived in a region of Cambodia that was extremely rampant with malaria and she could not afford the $5 (2.5 days of labor) Mosquito net to protect her children.[9]Her daughter and son-in-law both died because of this.If there had been another sweatshop in her area she would have been able to purchase a net and save her family.
A perfect example that shows that sweatshops are working to help the economies lies within a decision made by India fifty years ago.Kristof and Wudunn describe a situation regarding the way sweatshops effect economies:
“For all the misery they can engender, sweatshops at least offer a precarious escape from the poverty that is the developing world's greatest problem. Over the past 50 years, countries like India resisted foreign exploitation, while countries that started at a similar economic level -- like Taiwan and South Korea -- accepted sweatshops as the price of development. Today there can be no doubt about which approach worked better. Taiwan and South Korea are modern countries with low rates of infant mortality and high levels of education; in contrast, every year 3.1 million Indian children die before the age of 5, mostly from diseases of poverty like diarrhea.”[10]
The world must realize that there are always going to be places in the world that are not as prosperous as others.These will always be the places in the world that work harder and make less money.This happens even within the confines of our society today.For example, a construction worker may work much harder then a plastic surgeon that works a quarter of the hours and makes five times as much money.It is always based on the amount of schooling and education that one receives and since third world countries do not yet have the education that we do they will continue to do hard labor.However since these economies are continuing to grow they are also becoming more educated and thus they will someday not have an economy based around nothing but hard labor.
Although the conditions of many of these sweatshops are harsh and severe they still need to exist.Without them the economies of these countries would be non-existent.They would not be growing the way they are right now.People would be suffering even more then they already are.Sweatshops cannot and should not be removed from our world.They are essential to the survival of the delicate balance that is the world economy.Many of the brutal sweatshops are being changed to offer more accommodating conditions.[11]This is a major reason why they are so beneficial to the economies of these countries, because the workers want to work hard so that they can make money without as many risks as they used to have to deal with.They are without a doubt a necessary evil of our society.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[1] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[2] http://www.coopamerica.org/sweatshops/sswh...ysweatshops.htm (http://www.coopamerica.org/sweatshops/sswhysweatshops.htm)
[3] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[4] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[5] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[6] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[7] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[8] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[9] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[10] http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/ho...sweatshops.html (http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html)
[11]http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000924mag-sweatshops.html
Of course I shot down all of his points and tried to help him see what is really happening in the world but, I don't think it helped any...too bad
(Edited by sypher at 4:46 am on May 28, 2003)